British travellers have been queuing at Calais to return by sea after the
closure of airspace by a cloud of volcanic ash caused the cancellation of
thousands of flights across Europe.

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Travellers queue to buy ferry tickets to Dover at the harbour in CalaisPhoto: REUTERS

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(L-R) Denise and John Collins and Lynda Daly had been on holiday in ThailandPhoto: WILL WINTERCROSS

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Philip and Christine Parker were on a break to celebrate their 50th birthdaysPhoto: WILL WINTERCROSS

By David Harrison in Calais

7:30AM BST 18 Apr 2010

John Collins, 68, and his wife Denise, 60, from Manchester had been on holiday in Thailand. They flew from Amsterdam on Wednesday, but their connecting flight to Manchester was cancelled. "Our hearts sank," said Mr Collins, a retired transport manager. The couple and a friend checked into a hotel in Amsterdam as they waited for news.

After two nights, with no prospect of a flight, the trio joined up with three other people, hired a car and drove to Calais where they boarded a ferry. "We will probably hire another car in Dover," said Mr Collins as he waited at the ferry terminal in Calais.

"We were supposed to be home on Thursday afternoon. Instead it's likely to be the early hours on Sunday."

Families with young children found it tough. Adam Mills, 43, and his wife Jennifer, 41, from Harpenden in Bedfordshire, had been skiing in the French Alps with their two children Lauren, six, and Eddy, two.

"Our flight from Geneva was cancelled so we just kept the hire car and drove straight to Calais," said Mr Mills. His wife said: "It's been a headache, especially with the children, but we're being picked up in Dover and will be OK."

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Philip and Christine Parker, from Preston, devised an elaborate plan to get home after their flight from Paris was cancelled yesterday at the end of a break to celebrate their 50th birthdays.

With euro star trains fully booked, they took a train to Calais and once in Dover they were picked up by Mr Parker's brother-in-law. He drove him to Corley in the Midlands.

From there they were due to be picked up by their daughter and her boyfriend and driven home to Preston.

They were sanguine about their ordeal: "It's just our luck that it happened this week," said Mr Parker. "But you just have to get on with it."

For three 17-year-old girls from Bristol, the news that their flight from Paris had been cancelled came as a shock at the end of their week's holiday.

Emily Chard, Chloe Taylor and Kath Wallbridge were told they could not fly back until Wednesday. But they had to get back to their independent school. In the end Miss Wallbridge's parents, Helen and Martyn, drove from Bristol to Calais to collect the girls. They took a train from Paris, paying 50 each, much more than the 60 return they had paid for their flights. Miss Taylor said: "My mum texted to say there was a cloud of ash and it was fantastic that Kat's parents are helping us out in this way."